Board of Trustees Appoints New Board Chair, Officers; Student Trustee Elected

Westfield State University Board of Trustees has elected Ali Salehi to serve as its chair, while Trustees Melissa Alvarado ’99, and Gloria B. Williams, Ed.D., ’77, were elected as vice-chair and secretary, respectively. Daniel Currier, Class of 2025, was elected to the board as student trustee. 

An Ipswich resident, Salehi serves as managing director of Hansen Engineering and Machinery Co., Inc. of Danvers. A former board member of the Greater Westfield Chamber of Commerce, the Westfield State University Foundation, and the Westfield Redevelopment Authority, Salehi is a current trustee of Suffield Academy and a former vice-chair of the Baystate Health Foundation. He holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering and an M.S. in engineering management from Western New England University.

Alvarado, a Westfield resident, is an assistant vice president in strategic planning and delivery at MassMutual Financial Group and prior to that worked in its compliance and information technology organizations. She previously served as the clerk of the Westfield State Foundation and was a member of the Westfield State Alumni Association Executive Council. In addition to the B.S. in business administration that she earned in 1999 from Westfield State, Alvarado holds an M.B.A. in finance from Western New England University and earned an executive certification in leadership and management from the University of Notre Dame.

Williams, a Springfield resident, is an educational consultant and leadership mentor, who previously completed a 21-year tenure as a master principal for Springfield Public Schools. Her exceptional service in education, including as a representative for the Superintendent’s Advisory Committee, was recognized when she received the 2019 Educational Legacy Achievement Award, presented by Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Williams is also president of the consulting firm Coalition of Experienced Black Educators, Inc., and newly elected president of the Board of Directors for Families Against Violence. She earned a B.S. in education from Westfield State College in 1977 and a Certificate in Advanced Graduate Studies, a M.Ed. and a Ed.D. from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Currier, of Attleboro, was elected by the student body in April to serve as Westfield State student trustee for the 2023–24 academic year. A junior with majors in accounting and finance with minors in economics and English, Currier was formerly vice president for Finance for Westfield State’s Student Government Association, is president of the Accounting Club and serves as a campus tour guide, new student orientation leader and peer tutor. Currier is also a Commonwealth Honors Scholar and has received the Executive Excellence Award from the Westfield State University Student Government Association.